Archives January 2022

Monday, April 11, 2005

Anna Ayala, the Las Vegas woman who claims to have found the notorious “chili finger” at a Wendy’s outlet in San Jose, California, has filed lawsuits against other businesses, according to researchers at the Associated Press. Her previous court battles included the national El Pollo Loco chicken-chain, a previous employer, and even General Motors.

Ayala successfully won her suit for medical expenses against El Pollo Loco, after her daughter Genesis contracted salmonella poisoning from eating at the restaurant. However, Ayala lost another suit in 2000 claiming that a wheel fell off her car.

Ayala’s original account of the incident spoke “emotionally and with disgust” to the San Jose Mercury News when she described it to the paper.

“Lies, lies, lies, that’s all I am hearing. They should look at Wendy’s. What are they hiding? Why are we being victimized again and again?” Ayala recently told The Associated Press. Ayala is now in her Las Vegas home, avoiding reporters.

“It doesn’t prove anything,” family spokesman Ken Bono told the San Francisco Chronicle. “My mom has 10 lawsuits. A lot of people have lawsuits. Why would she sue for money? She has plenty of money,” he said.

Nick Muyo, a spokesman for the San Jose Police department, said not to expect new information in the case for at least a week.

“We just want to step back and take a deep breath,” Muyo told Knight Ridder Newspapers. “From a law enforcement point of view, once you establish it is a human finger, you have to wonder is this a case of industrial accident or is this a case of unreported homicide,” he said.

Las Vegas police searched Anna Ayala’s home on Wednesday, retrieving a cooler and other effects from her home, such as a makeup case.

Despite the incident, which has dramatically reduced sales at Northern California Wendy’s outlets, die-hard Wendy’s fans are still turning up for lunch, even at the outlet where the finger was found, at 1405 Monterey Highway, just south of downtown San Jose.

“We’ve eaten here for years,” a police officer told the San Francisco Chronicle under the condition that he remain anonymous. “They’re very nice people. When we work Spartan Stadium, we always eat here,” he said.

San Jose City Council candidate Andrew Diaz still eats the chili. And he witnessed the finger discovery.

“I walked away real slow,” Diaz told the San Francisco Chronicle. “I didn’t want any commotion,” he said.

Thursday, April 7, 2005

A 27-year-old former beauty student from the Gold Coast of Australia faces the death penalty. She was allegedly caught at Bali airport importing marijuana from Australia in October. Appearing before an Indonesian judge after authorities found 4.1kg of high-grade cannabis in her unlocked boarding bag, she could be sentenced to death by firing squad, the maximum penalty for the crime.

With that possibility looming for Ms. Corby, her father journeyed to her side, and an anonymous email petition was distributed around Australia and overseas, calling on the Australian government to ensure that, innocent or guilty, Ms. Corby is returned to Australia to escape execution.

An Australian witness who volunteered information which he says will endanger his own life, has testified that Schapelle Corby was unwittingly caught up in a domestic Australian drug-running operation gone wrong. The man alleged that Australian airport workers had placed the contraband in her luggage after it had been checked-in, with the drugs to have been removed before the luggage left Australia. [1]

Ms. Corby, who says she is innocent of the charges, staggered and paused to vomit while being led through a throng of journalists watching her trial in Jakarta, Indonesia, earlier today.

“I’m really sick,” Ms. Corby told Densbar’s head judge Linton Sirait, who told her to take better care of herself in jail so she would not get diarrhea. “Don’t be stressed,” Judge Sirait added as he adjourned the trial until April 14.

Her sister said a doctor would visit her in prison to assess her condition. Her father, suffering with prostate cancer, said it was difficult to watch his daughter struggling so hard when things were nearing the “nitty-gritty now.”

He added: “The stress and the whole thing and the stomach cramps and the nerves. It’s getting on top of her.”

Australian politicians, noting the public support thrown behind the Gold Coast citizen, are promising to take her case up on several issues with the Indonesian Attorney-General later today. However, Mr. Corby expressed doubts that politicians could work things out: “It depends on what they call justice here [in Indonesia]. It looks a bit fairyland to me.”

“Everything’s reversed here. You’re guilty until you’re proven innocent,” commented Mr. Corby in Indonesia. Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is said to be monitoring the case to ensure the court hands down a just and fair verdict.

Sunday, April 3, 2005The annual Sunday Times Rich List published today showed that Ireland now has six euro billionaires, up from four last year. The combined wealth of Irelands 250 wealthiest is €42.3bn.

Topping the list was the new entrant Hilary Weston with a fortune estimated at over €7.2bn. Weston was excluded in previous lists because the majority of her wealth was made abroad, however a rule change this year allowed the Dublin born model to enter in first place. Mrs Weston, 63, grew up in Ireland and built her modeling career there before becoming wed to Galen Weston, heir to his grandfathers multi-billion euro retailing fortune in Canada. The couple permanently moved to Canada in 1983 after a kidnap attempt by the IRA.

The top six on the list were as follows:

1. Hilary Weston and family; €7.286bn – Retailing
2. Sir Tony O’Reilly; €1.897bn – Food, media and inheritance
3. John Dorrance; €1.857bn – Inheritance
4. Dermot Desmond; €1.239bn – Finance
5. Sean Quinn; €1.157bn – Quarries, hotels, insurance and industry
6. Tony Ryan; €1.114bn – Airline

The iconic rock group U2 placed 10th with a combined fortune of €629m.

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

France came from a goal down to win their round of sixteen game 3-1 against Spain in Hanover, Tuesday.

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The win was a tactical triumph for the French coach Raymond Domenech whose team gave up 61 per cent of ball possession yet restricted their opponents to seven shots – two on target – and ran out three goal winners.

Nor did the French have many chances as for the majority of the game Spain patiently passed the ball around them. When they did have the ball they constantly pried at the Spanish offside line and therein found the weakness that lead to victory.

Though the French were offside eight times the crucial equaliser came from a Franck Ribéry run on to a Patrick Viera pass that beat the line of Spaniards close to half time. At speed Ribéry rounded Iker Casillas to slot home.

So solid were the French in defence intercepting passes, blocking shots and making tackles the only goal conceded – which put them behind – was from a penalty kick. This was slammed in low by David Villa on 27 minutes after Pablo had been clattered from behind by Liliam Thuram.

Ten minutes into the second half the score was at 1-1 but the French continued to test the Spanish offside trap. A worried Luis Aragonés brought on two substitutes and changed his system from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1. The Spanish defence sat closer to their penalty area so there was less room to pass balls behind them.

But still the Spanish line was caught on 82 minutes when Thierry Henry was fouled by Puyol as he attempted to connect with another through ball. Henry fell as if hit in the face by Puyol although this could not be confirmed with television evidence. Zinedine Zidane floated the resultant free kick into the box, there was an inadvertent flick on from a Spanish player and Viera nodded in at the far post off Sergio Ramos.

As the Spanish pressed for a last minute score the French broke through again, Zidane this time cut back to lose Puyol, and with the keeper off balance he reversed his shot to the near post to put the game out of reach.

So efficient was the French performance FIFA statisticians logged the team with just 19 minutes actual playing time. Brazil, who the French will play in the quarter-finals, too conceded the majority of possession in their game but in comparison beat Ghana 3-0 with 27 minutes actual playing time, Tuesday.